New York, 20 May 2026 - ... Words Mean Nothing at All, a painting by pioneering contemporary Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara (b.1959) will lead Bonhams 20th & 21st Century Art Evening Sale on May 20 in New York at its new U.S. flagship location, 111 West 57th Street.
Estimated at $4,000,000 to 6,000,0000 and monumental in scale, the present work was executed in 2012, one year after the Great East Japan Earthquake, a moment of profound personal and artistic reassessment for Nara. Reflecting a quieter, more introspective turn in Nara's practice and an important point of inflexion in his career, the painting engages themes of memory, solitude, and the limits of language. Also bringing together a rare density of Nara's most iconic motifs, including the solitary girl, a tree, text fragments, birds, mountains, and a four‑leaf clover, it stands out as an exceptionally rich and emotionally resonant work from this period of his practice.
Another standout highlight in the sale will be La Muse endormie II, an exceptionally rare-to-market sculpture by Constantin Brancusi (1876 to 1957), one of the most influential sculptors of the twentieth century. Estimated at $3,000,000 to 5,000,000, the sculpture makes its auction debut, hailing directly from the artist's estate. Among Brancusi's most celebrated subjects, the sculpture marks his pivotal shift from likeness to essence, with the head distilled into a pure, luminous form.
Among the other notable works in the sale is René Magritte's (1898 to 1967) Le miroir vivant, 1935, estimated at $1,000,000 to 1,500,000. After remaining in a private collection for nearly nine decades, this fresh-to-market painting features Magritte's iconic feuille unique "leaf tree" motif, which the artist first began exploring in the year it was painted. The present work also carries an exceptional exhibition history, having been shown at the Julien Levy Gallery in 1936, Magritte's first solo exhibition in New York.
The sale will also feature John Chamberlain's (1927 to 2011) Murmurous Moto, Maestro, a rare monochromatic sculpture executed in 1991, estimated at $800,000 to 1,200,000; Banksy's (b.1975) Girl with Balloon, an iconic image by the artist, estimated at $700,000 to 1,000,000; as well as pieces from a distinguished family collection, including a group of rare Impressionist & Post-Impressionist fans by some of the foremost artists of the period including Paul Gauguin (1848 to 1903), Camille Pissarro (1830 to 1903), and Pierre Bonnard (1867 to 1947) to name a few, with estimates ranging from $20,000 to $500,000.
Additional highlights rounding out the sale include:
Imagen perdida 35, executed in 2005, by Olga de Amaral (b.1932), estimated at $300,000 to 500,000, from the Collection of Ann F. Kaplan.
Streaks of Oil, executed in 1972, by Ed Ruscha (b.1937), estimated at $300,000 to 500,000, from the Estate of Samantha Eggar.
Vanity Unfair for Gordon Matta-Clark, painted in 1978, by James Rosenquist (1933 to 2017), estimated at $300,000 to 500,000, from the Collection of Gloria Luria.
Beyond Camel, painted in 1980, by Larry Rivers (1923 to 2002), estimated at $250,000 to 350,000, from the Collection of Gloria Luria.
The 20th & 21st Century Art Evening Sale will be followed the next day by two additional sales from the department.
Post-War & Contemporary Art
May 21
On May 21 the Post War & Contemporary Art sale will present Squiggly Brushstrokes, 1997, by Sol Le Witt (1928 to 2007). Estimated at $120,000 to 180,000, the work belongs to Le Witt's celebrated late series of gouaches, marking his significant and final return to a more direct, painterly mode after decades devoted to conceptual and systematic practices. Large-scale and immersive, the composition unfolds as an all-over field of undulating lines rendered in a restrained palette, exemplifying the mature synthesis of structure and intuition that defines Le Witt's late works. Also of note in the sale is Green Hat 2, painted in 1964 by Alex Katz (b. 1927), estimated at $80,000 to 120,000. Created during a formative period in Katz's career, it exemplifies his crisp, contemporary approach to portraiture at a time when abstraction dominated American art.
Other highlights rounding out the sale include Roy Lichtenstein's (1923 to 1997) Suspended Mobile, executed in 1990, estimated at $150,000 to 200,000; Fernando Botero's (1932 to 2023) Still Life with Grapes, estimated at $100,000 to 150,000; and Bob Thompson's (1937 to 1966), Horseman of the Queen of Sheba, executed in 1966, estimated at $100,000 to 150,000.
Impressionist & Modern Art
May 21
Composition aux gants jaunes, painted in 1934, by Fernand Léger (1881 to 1955) will lead the Impressionist & Modern Art sale on May 21. Estimated at $250,000 to 350,000, the present work was painted during a pivotal moment in Léger's career, reflecting his move toward a more liberated pictorial language in which familiar objects, here, floating gloves and circus like-forms, are isolated and freed from traditional perspective and narrative. Held in the same private collection for almost 40 years, following its acquisition in 1988, the painting now returns to the market as a rare and compelling example of Léger's mature work.
Also notable in the sale is Bernard Buffet's (1928 to 1999), Tréboul, environs de Douarnenez, le port à marée basse, painted in 1972, and estimated at $200,000 to 300,000. A strong example of the artist's mature maritime imagery, the work depicts a Breton harbour at low tide and embodies a contemplative stillness, reflecting Buffet's renewed focus on structure, restraint, and autonomy during his later career.
Other highlights rounding out the sale include Edgar Degas' (1834 to 1917), Danseuse assise, executed circa 1878-1880, estimated at $150,000 to 200,000, and Édouard Vuillard's (1868 to 1940) Madame Hessel à Les Étincelles, 1902, estimated at $100,000 to 150,000.
A Lasting Impression: The Renoir Collection of Gabrielle Renard, an exceptional online single-owner sale of 21 works by leading French Impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841 to 1919), will precede the 20th & 21st Century Art Evening sale the same day. Gifted directly by the artist to Gabrielle Renard (1878 to 1959), his longtime model and family nanny, the works have remained in her family collection for over a century, with the majority never-before-seen publicly.
(Press Release)
